Vehicle tax: how to check it and avoid fines
How to check if a vehicle is taxed, when it is due, and what changes when you buy or sell one.
How to check if a vehicle is taxed
Use the free vehicle enquiry service on GOV.UK. Enter the registration and it shows whether the vehicle is taxed and when the tax is due, along with its MOT status.
The DVLA also sends a reminder (a V11) before tax is due, but it's easy for it to go to an old address or get lost on a busy desk.
Buying or selling a vehicle
- Tax doesn't transfer with the vehicle. When you buy one, you must tax it before you drive it, even straight home from the seller.
- When you sell, tell the DVLA. Any full months of tax left are refunded automatically.
Electric vehicles
Electric vehicles have had to pay vehicle tax since April 2025. Even when a vehicle's tax rate is £0, it still has to be taxed; that's how the DVLA knows it's on the road.
Off the road? SORN
If a vehicle is kept off the road and you don't want to tax it, you must make a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN). A SORN vehicle can't be driven or parked on a public road, except to a pre-booked MOT.
What happens if it's not taxed
Untaxed vehicles are picked up automatically by the DVLA's records and number-plate cameras. You can be fined, the penalty is higher if it goes to court, and the vehicle can be clamped or impounded.
Setting up a Direct Debit with the DVLA means you won't forget to renew, but you still need to remember to tax a vehicle when you buy it.
Motorlane Fleet keeps every vehicle's tax date alongside its MOT, insurance and servicing, and reminds you well before each one is due.
This guide is general information for drivers in England, Scotland and Wales, not legal advice. Rules can change; check the official guidance on GOV.UK, and your insurance policy, for your situation.
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